The Philadelphia Flyers Junior Hockey team will look to bounce back from a rough weekend in New England, which saw them drop all three of their games, and travel to Long Island to take on the PAL Jr. Islanders for two games.  Saturday will be an 8:30pm start time, and Sunday a 12:10pm puck drop, at The Rinx in Hauppauge, NY.

The Flyers had a difficult time at the Boston Jr Bruins Shootout showcase last weekend, dropping both games to the Islanders Hockey Club 6-1 on Saturday, and 6-2 on Sunday, and losing 5-4 in their Monday afternoon tilt with the Springfield Pics.  The PAL Jr Islanders fared better in the showcase, winning their games against the Okanagan Eagles and Springfield, but losing to the  Boston Jr. Bruins.  The Islanders hold an advantage over the Flyers in the standings after the first two weekends of the regular season, as the Islanders hold a 2-3 record with four points, to the Flyers 1-4 record with two points.

Despite suffering losses last weekend, the Flyers bright spots heading into this weekend continue to be the play of Nick Polsinelli, who upped his points total to seven on the season, with six  goals and an assist, after tallying two goals and that assist in Boston last weekend.  JR Barone also increased his points total to six, adding two more assists this past weekend.  The Flyers also welcomed two new additions to the team, Brandon and Bennet Altman, who both made their Flyers debuts in New England, playing in two games.  Brandon tallied a goal and two assists while Bennett earned himself a goal.  Corbin Gustafson got his first start in goal this season, playing in the Sunday game against the Islanders.

The Islanders begin their season without their two biggest scorers from last year, Joseph Duzsak and William Vizzo, who both earned 60 points last season.  Vizzo is currently playing at American International College after committing to play at the end of last season.  They also lost last season’s captain, Cory Gottfried, to a NCAA commitment.  They currently have three players tied for the points lead on the team, as Eric Linel, Ian Keller, and Jack Riley each have 4 points.  The team finished with a 28-16 record last season.  Head Coach Eddie Galiani believes the team is “cautiously optimistic that we will have a good team this year.” 

The Flyers are hoping for some revenge this season on the Islanders, as the Isles won three of the four team’s meetings last season.

Players to Watch:

For the Flyers, once again keep an eye on Polsinelli.  We have a feeling we’ll be saying that a lot this year.  Also watch to see who Coach Beach plays in goal, as now all three goaltenders have seen action this year.  The Bennett brothers are playing the same PAL Islanders team they left to join the Flyers just a week ago.  Keep an eye to see if they bring the intensity against a team they spent training camp preparing with.

For the Islanders, it’s still very early in the season to put a finger on any player in the lineup, but watch out for Joe Richardson and Mike Gilroy on the blue line as two returning players from last year who Coach Galiani can provide a presence on the back end.  Jack Gaffney and Ian Keller are newcomers to keep an eye on up front, especially since Keller has jumped to the top of the stats sheet already for the team in just his first two weekends of play.